The Image of God

Similarly to Christians, the ancient Greeks believed the gods made man in their image. The Greek creation myth parallels the creation account in Genesis. The myth tells of Prometheus, a titan, to whom the gods assigned the task of making man. Prometheus shaped man out of dust, and one of the gods breathed life into him. In Genesis,

The LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life” (Genesis 2:7 ESV).

According to the myth, because man had nothing to set him apart from the beasts of the earth, Prometheus fashioned man to walk on two legs, like the gods did. In the Bible, God placed man above the rest of His creation, creating him in his image (Genesis 1:27-28).

Of course, the stories are not the same: one is the truth told by the author of all life, while the other is the fantasied imaginings of a people seeking to explain the world around them. Actually, even the similarities outlined above are disparate. The Greek gods delegated the task to an inferior titan, their enemy and prisoner, and Zeus, the king of the gods, was furious that Prometheus had made man like the gods. But the triune God created man himself, and saw fit to make him his image-bearer. Another, perhaps more significant, difference, remains. In reality, the Greek gods did not make man; it was quite the opposite. The Greeks fashioned their gods after themselves, and unfortunately, excused their vices by attributing them to their gods. Here, the context sheds abundant light on the truth of one passage in particular:

Those who make them [idols] become like them; so do all who trust in them” (Psalm 115:8 ESV).

When the Greeks, or anyone, makes their own gods, they fashion them in their own image, and progressively conform by worship. Contrarily, God truly made man, and He made him “very good” (Genesis 1:31 ESV).

The Image of God

Thus, it is simple to observe the differences between the biblical teaching and Greek mythology, but the doctrine of the imago Dei, or “image of God,” remains a multifaceted subject, with many aspects to explore. Most fundamentally, the basic nature of the imago Dei must be examined. What does it truly mean to be made in the image of God? What is the extent of this image? Less generally, man’s image bearing implies privileged duties and offers many blessings, it provides a model for living with a vital precaution, and it holds man responsible for his actions.

Language

The basic question of the nature of God’s image is tricky, chiefly because of the language barrier and the ambiguity of the English word “image.” An analysis of the Old Testament, accompanied by a cursory linguistic study, is the natural and necessary starting point. Within the Old Testament, most material lies in the early chapters of Genesis:

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image [tselem], after our likeness [demuth]. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in his own image; in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth (Genesis 1:26-28 ESV).

First, Genesis 1:26-28 reveals substantial information. It is the first passage to mention being made in the image of God and offers likeness as a synonym to the word image (Genesis 1:26). Some, especially medieval thinkers, have distinguished the two words, but it seems there is no distinction in the conveyance of the words. The Hebrew words for image and likeness (tselem and demuth, respectively) in this passage are used interchangeably throughout the following chapters (Genesis 1:27; 5:1, 3; 9:6). Additionally, the poetic nature (the repetition and rhythmic phrasing) of the passage serves to explain the inclusion of a synonymous, and thus not entirely necessary, word. And if the two words are indeed synonymous, the term likeness can then be used to clear the fog surrounding the term image.

Webster’s Dictionary offers two simple definitions for likeness. The first is copy, and the second is appearance or semblance. The former is not applicable, because to be a copy is unthinkable. Man cannot be a copy of God, for that would make him a God. And God is one, and there is no other God (see Deuteronomy 6:4 and Isaiah 43:11). Therefore, the latter is the better definition.

So it would appear that the image of God may be explained as the appearance or semblance of God. The word “semblance” often carries the connotation of an imperfect appearance.

And the translation of Psalm 39 supports this idea. The word tselem appears here (Psalm 39:6), and many translations have rendered the word shadow in English. Shadows are mere silhouettes of another entity, and, like a semblance, often distorted and vague.

Finally, one last significant piece of information can be gleaned from the Old Testament:

“Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image” (Gen. 9:6 ESV).

Here, it is clear that the image of God in man, given before the Fall, is still present after sin’s curse entered the world.

To summarize, from a careful investigation of the Old Testament, one can glean that the image of God in man is a “likeness” or a “shadow” or a “semblance,” but it does not make him identical to or equal with God. And, though the Creator placed his image in men before the Fall, it is not nullified by sin. This is not much information, but it is sufficient. Paul teaches that Scripture is enough to equip Christians to serve God well:

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17 ESV, italics added).

New Testament

It may seem natural to next examine the New Testament, but it does not prove helpful when defining what it means to be made in God’s image. Despite the word “image” appearing many times in the English New Testament, the focus is on following the example of Christ (Romans 8:29). This references the goal of sanctification, a process of conformation to the image of Christ unique to regenerate Christians. The imago Dei on which this essay focuses is the innate image of God in all, both the regenerate and the spiritually dead; it focuses on the imago Dei which is the source of common grace. The New Testament, will likely, however, prove useful when exploring the privilege, teaching, and responsibility which the imago Dei entails.

Duties and Privileges

Man’s status as image-bearer is undoubtedly a privilege. God created man last, as the climax of creation, and, while God declares all of his preceding handiwork “good,” mankind is the only creation which God designated “very good.” Why? Considering that, excluding the imago Dei, the Creation account mentions no distinction between man and the rest of creation, it seems to follow that it is the image of God that gives man this status.

However, this title is no honorific — humble, yet dignified, duty follows. Because God made man in his image, humans “have dominion over. . . every creeping thing that creeps on the earth” (Genesis 1:26 ESV). This dominion is a consequent of God’s image: “God is the King of all the earth” (Psalm 47:7 ESV), and men, as a shadow of the great King, are called to rule over God’s creation, but under God. Man’s authority comes directly from God, and is therefore subject to God’s command. God commands Adam to ”work it [the Garden] and keep it” (Genesis 2:15 ESV). A few lines later, Adam is given the task of naming every living thing (Genesis 2:20).

Thus, man lives life serving God, working and taking care of his creation until the day of his return. This is stewardship, established before the Fall and tainted by sin after, but it remains a blessing. Though the curse of sin extends to the fields, which is man’s work (Genesis 3:17-19), labor remains a blessing and provides purpose in an opportunity to “work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men” (Colossians 3:23 ESV).

Additionally, throughout the Bible, many more privileges unique to humans are explained to be “shadows of things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ” (Colossians 2:17 ESV, italics added). And if “shadow” is a viable translation for tselem in Genesis, and man is made in the “shadow of God,” then perhaps the ability to partake in the shadows of better things to come is a direct blessing of God’s “shadow” in man.

Notice that, just as the image of God in man looks forward to glorification, or complete conformation, which is the goal of sanctification (see Romans 8:29), the shadows of things to come point to the greater things made perfect in Christ. Seeing this parallel, it seems probable that enjoyment of the incomplete blessings of Christ, which are to be perfected in the last days, is linked with participation in God’s image.

For example, consider marriage and the ceremonial law. According to Ephesians 5, marriage is a picture of the relationship between Christ and the Church (Ephesians 5:32). Just as Christ is the Head and the Church is his bride, a husband is the head of a household and his wife is his bride. This means that all marriage before Christ was merely a shadow, looking forward to the Church Christ would establish, and that every marriage since Christ mirrors his relationship with the Church.

The ceremonial law of the Old Testament is similar. Christ became flesh to save his people from their sins. He is prophesied as a “lamb that is led to the slaughter” (Isaiah 53:7 ESV). He came to be the perfect sacrifice, and his blood serves as the propitiation for God’s wrath on sinners. Thus, the ceremonial law was a profound foreshadowing of Christ’s work on the Cross. Every sacrifice performed by priests in the Temple, every lamb slain, and every pool of blood was anticipation of Christ’s atonement, of the spotless lamb that was killed, and of his blood that makes men clean.

In summary, many privileges result from the image of God. Man is given dominion over creation. He is invited to join in active participation in and enjoyment of blessings which are to be made complete in Christ. He is declared worthy of enjoyment in the shadows of greater things which shout God’s glory, simply because he bears God’s image.

A Model of Godly Living

Other aspects of the imago Dei doctrine remain, one of which is the model for godly living inferred from it. Primarily, God’s image implies much concerning how men should live. If it is “very good” to be a shadow of God, it must be exceedingly good to conform to his likeness more substantively. In fact, if man was made in the image of God, it follows that man was made to model God.

However, an objection arises: man no longer lives as the Creator designed him to; he is living in rebellion. It is here the revelation that the image of God is still in man after the Fall (Genesis. 9:6 above) bears significance. The sin nature of man does not erase his divine image. It does conflict with and abuse it, but it does not divest man of God’s image.

Desire to Be Like God

The sin nature perverts the image of God, and thus warrants an admonition. It is a warning that comes from the beginning, from Genesis 3. The serpent reveals a seductive temptation which he insidiously exploits. He is the greatest tempter, and when he tempts his first target (not victim, for man is fully guilty and held responsible for his sin), mankind’s federal head, in whom all sinned, the serpent betrays the desire that was sufficiently strong to prompt man to indulge in sin before it was in his nature to sin.

Men must be wary of this desire, that is, the desire to “be like God” (Genesis 3:5 ESV).

It is a corruption of man’s dominion over creation; it is the attempted elevation of God’s image above God himself. It is a lust after power and autonomy. It is an expression of despise to God. It is an unhealthy thirst after the incommunicable nature of God, the character of God which is not to be shared in by men. Thus, it is incredibly enticing to man’s rebellious nature.

The God-honoring desire to be like God is entirely different: it is a longing “to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29 ESV), to share in the communicable attributes of God, not to steal glory from God in a vain attempt to replace him. It is a firm belief that one has “been crucified with Christ. It is no longer [he] who lives, but Christ who lives in [him]” (Galatians 2:20 ESV), that “[Christ] must increase, but [he] must decrease” (John 3:30 ESV).

One such instance of the culture at large succumbing to the blasphemous desire to “be like God” is seen in the recognized philosophical shift during the Enlightenment. This change is generally referred to as the transition from “pre-modernity” to “modernity.”

In a premodern society, truth is transcendent, it can only be acquired through revelation, and all should submit to it. But modernity largely replaced pre-modernity in the Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution. The former was a movement in which man tried to isolate truth from revelation by reason, giving rise to rationalism, and the latter was a time of unparalleled innovation and technological progress. Consequently, most of the human race became drunk on their own success. They declared self-sufficiency, denying the need for revelation. They truly, whether consciously or not, believed they were their own gods. They were wrong, of course, and the World Wars thoroughly demonstrated that rationalism may burn hot for a time, like a fire kindled with gasoline, but will quickly suffocate without any sustainable fuel.

Righteous Reasoning

It should be recognized, however, that reason is not inherently evil. Reason and logic, like everything, are good for one purpose — glorifying God. In fact, Scripture testifies to the goodness of logic. John calls Jesus the Logos, or Word (see John 1:1). The word “logic” descends from logos. Therefore, Jesus is the Logos, the reason. He is the source and standard for logic and reasoning. And, because of man’s divine mark, he is invited to exercise reason. God also calls Isaiah to reason at his initial calling:

"‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the Lord” (Isaiah 1:8 ESV, italics added)

Notice the inclusion of “together.” Men are not called to reason alone but jointly with the Lord. Further, Paul tells the Philippians to “let [their] reasonableness be known to all” (Philippians 4:5 ESV, italics added). What follows is equally important: immediately after his appeal to “reasonableness,” Paul directs his readers to rely on God (Philippians 4:6-7).

Thus, all reason stems from Christ, and should always submit to the authority of Scripture. It quickly becomes wicked, though, when separated from God and his Word; it becomes twisted when taken out of its natural context.

Even after sin, men are still made to live like God. Until they conform to his character, men’s lives will be dissonant and inconsistent. As shown in Orwell’s 1984, or any dystopian novel, when a society denies its God and seeks to live by its own rules, or even establishes its own “Big Brother,” all may seem ideal, but internal conflict is inevitable and clear. Men will never find joy if they continue to reject the truth, because they are living against the image of God in them. When men embrace the image of God, stop living for themselves, and start living for Christ, their harmonious lives will overflow with joy. John Piper, a pastor in Minnesota, described this life as “Christian hedonism” in his book, Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist.

What, specifically, should men’s lives look like if they are modeling God but strictly avoiding the idolatrous self-deifying? Christ teaches humans “must be perfect, as [their] heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48 ESV). Later, Paul implores men to “be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved” (Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV). And, in another book, Paul writes, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians. 5:25 ESV).

Each of these passages reveals that the standard for living is the triune God — Father, Son, and Spirit: “as [their] heavenly Father is perfect,” “as Christ [the Son] loved,” and “keep in step with the Spirit.” Therefore, if this is true, man need look no further than the character of the members of the Trinity for a guide to living.

Attributes of God

Naturally, Scripture is the place to learn about the character of God. There are many attributes of God revealed in his Word, but there are a few outstanding examples to note.

First is the life of Christ. The Son showed the perfect life when he took on flesh, and God, in his wisdom, preserved four inspired accounts of his life, as well as God-breathed commentary throughout the rest of the New Testament. Therefore, men should live like Christ and “imitate” him, and, because of the abundant Scriptural resources, they have no excuse when they do not.

Second, the Bible teaches that God is love, and points back to the incarnate life of Christ for evidence.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him (1 John 4:7-9 ESV).

This passage clearly explains that “God is love” and that to be “of God and know God” one must love. This alone demonstrates the massive importance of love, but Christ also shows the necessity of love when he declares that love is the Greatest Command, upon which all else depends (Matthew 22:34-40).  Beyond this, Paul expounds greatly upon the importance of love in 1 Corinthians 13. He describes the nature of love, and writes that all is worthless without love.

Thus, love is essential to modeling God, and love does not exist apart from God.

Another exceptionally valuable teaching on the character of God is the well-known passage about the fruit of the Spirit. The passage is found in the same chapter as the above quoted directive of Paul to “keep in step with the Spirit,” Galatians 5:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23 ESV).

The Holy Spirit is a member of the Godhead, and is an equally important exemplar for living harmoniously with God’s image. If men live by the Spirit and keep in step with him, they will produce the same fruits. Therefore, a life lived for God will be identifiable by the fruits of the Spirit.

The final notable quality of God’s character is community. The perfect model of community is within the Godhead, and it is the culmination of the previous exemplary characteristics. The Trinity is the archetype of every true community. It is an expression of absolute unity, three-in-one. The Godhead is characterized by love and humility, and, therefore, godly love and humility is the foundation for any God-honoring community. Also, solitude is the very first matter God declares “not good.” Genesis 2:18 reads,

Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him” (ESV).

Therefore, it is clear that, just as the Father, Son, and Spirit enjoy and exhibit a close-knit, godly community within the Godhead, God made man for the same community and fellowship.

In short, man’s call to model his life after God is a clarion call. Scripture clearly teaches that the goal of life is to conform to the likeness of God and glorify him. The life of Christ, which prominently displays the love of God, and all the fruits of the Spirit, ultimately defines the community of the Trinity, the typical community for which all are created.

Free Will?

Finally, one last facet of the imago Dei is a semblance of free will. God did not desire unthinking obedience, which offers no honest fellowship or real glory. He wished for man to exercise free thought like himself, for man to have his own will.

However, first and foremost, God is sovereign. “He does all that he pleases” (Psalm 115:3 ESV), and “no purpose of [his] can be thwarted” (Job 42:2). In Eden, God exercised his sovereignty by ordaining that man had the choice to sin, a sort of free will.

The commentators of the Reformation Study Bible write of the word “commanded” in Genesis 2:16, “God’s first words to man assume his ability to choose and his moral capacity and responsibility” (italics added). If God gave orders to man, then it follows that God had ordained that man could (and would), in one sense, though still under the ordinance of God, act contrary to his will. Because if men were “mindless robots,” or impotent beings dragged about “kicking and screaming,” God had no reason to issue any sort of command. Therefore, this free will is the very thing that incriminates man. Because Adam, and all others in Adam, willingly sinned, mankind is justly held responsible for its actions.

Conclusion

Thus, the exact nature of the image of God remains largely a mystery, and very little of Scripture is devoted to explaining it. It can be known that it is a likeness, or a semblance or shadow but is not a copy, or an identical nature denoting equality.

However, from the mysterious nature, many rich truths can be grasped. The imago Dei grants many privileges. Man is called to rule over creation — subordinately, of course, under the authority of God. There are also many blessings in this world which are here for the enjoyment of God’s image-bearers and the glory of God, like marriage.

Additionally, the fact that man is made in the image of God requires that he live accordingly. He is made to imitate God humbly, avoiding the temptation to declare himself his own god. He is called to follow the example of Christ and is endowed with the Holy Spirit to manifest the character of God in himself. Finally, one more truth of the imago Dei remains, a blessing which carries responsibility.

God made man to have a will, like himself, which is a wonderful gift. Simultaneously, though, it incriminates man; because of his “free will,” man can be and is justly held responsible for his sin.

The utter essence of the imago Dei may be slightly vague and unclear, but God has revealed enough for any faithful student of his Word to learn much of the important doctrine and its implications.

Works Cited

• Piper, John. “The Image of God.” Desiring God, 1 Mar. 1971, www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-image-of-god, Accessed 5 May 2020
• Piper, John. Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist. 3rd ed., Multnomah Books, 2017.